


Dead Man's Lullaby

by rhythmicroman



Category: Marble Hornets
Genre: Cameras, Coughing, Marking, Memory Loss, Murder, Not Canon Compliant, Possessive Behavior, Post-Canon, Slenderverse, Strangulation, Video Cameras, a little bit of hypnosis, entries are vaguely referenced, it depends on the time really, mild objectification, tim and masky are sort of the same person but sort of not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2019-03-01 10:55:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13293336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhythmicroman/pseuds/rhythmicroman
Summary: The static was calming, like a lullaby, and sucked all the despair out of him.





	Dead Man's Lullaby

**Author's Note:**

> A few disclaimers:  
> \- It's been a long while since I've seen anything past entry 67, so excuse any inaccuracies.  
> \- Jay is Skully for the sake of convenience and storytelling.  
> \- Slenderman and the Operator are the same person in this universe; "Slenderman" is the name unknowing people have given him, "the Operator" is his title/status.

The static was calming, like a lullaby, and sucked all the despair out of him.

The Operator stood over him, flickering and monochrome, staring down at him with invisible eyes, beckoning him with a transparent smile – and he walked closer to it, the buzz of the static still in his head, and looked up tiredly.

It called him its child, its proxy, its most valuable possession, and reached out to him. He said nothing, simply stepped close enough to touch it, and pressed his hands carefully against its abdomen.

The static was deafening now, a repetitive crackle that drowned out everything else, and the Operator wrapped him in its embrace, tentacles and arms holding him tight.

The cold burn of its mark on his neck, right where his jaw ended, let him drown in its safety – and it didn’t let go until his eyes were closed and his heart slowed to a crawl.

* * *

 

His mask felt right on his face, and he didn’t think to take it off, not now.

The reddened patch of skin under his ear where the marking lay quickly turned away most attackers – and if that failed, his hands always seemed to work, twisted around their necks, pressing as hard as he could with his thumbs.

He’d left many reckless attackers writhing in his wake, gasping for air that’d never come. He was sure to leave the symbol behind too, so people knew what he’d done, so people knew why he’d done it.

(One of them survived. He came across them one day, fists clenched in preparation, but their eyes had flicked up to his neck and they’d turned and left. He was almost disappointed. He almost missed the rush.)

* * *

 

“Tim.”

He paused, turned to the new voice with a question in his eyes. A man with a hint of familiarity, pretty eyes hidden behind a mask not unlike his own, black lips replaced with crudely-painted teeth.

“It’s Masky.” He corrected, voice hoarse and rough.

The stranger adopted a sad expression, and said nothing else, simply fiddling with the camera in their hand. He glanced at it for a split second, caught sight of a blinking light, and disappeared as quickly as possible.

In the darkness, behind some shrubbery, he noted how backwards this felt, the stranger reaching blindly for him in the darkness – but he was always sure to move back a few steps whenever they got too close.

The rhythmic blinking of a red light in the distance kept him on the edge, fear spiking in his heart, though he could never place why. He longed for safety, reached for the static – and it came, calling his name, holding him close and keeping him hidden.

The stranger coughed, loudly and aggressively, then turned and fled.

He let the static carry him, slumped against a tree’s trunk.

**Author's Note:**

> I played Ib for the first time in years earlier today, so the majority of Slendy-Masky interaction is based on the doll room, and the majority of Skully-Masky interaction is based on the "memory's crannies" ending.
> 
> Constructive criticism is welcomed.


End file.
